Progressive Democrats of America was founded in 2004 to transform the Democratic Party and our country. We seek to build a party and government controlled by citizens, not corporate elites-with policies that serve the broad public interest, not just private interests. As a grassroots PAC operating inside the Democratic Party, and outside in movements for peace and justice, PDA played a key role in the stunning electoral victories of November 2006 and 2008. Our inside/outside strategy is guided by the belief that a lasting majority will require a revitalized Democratic Party built on firm progressive principles.

For over two decades, the party declined as its leadership listened more to the voices of corporations than those of Americans. PDA strives to rebuild the Democratic Party from the bottom up-from every congressional district to statewide party structures to the corridors of power in Washington, where we work arm in arm with the Congressional Progressive Caucus. In just a couple of years PDA and its allies have shaken up the political status-quo on issues from ending the Iraq war, voter rights, protecting Social Security, a full employment economy, national healthcare and economic justice.

Progressive Democats of America is a federal political committee which primarily helps members elect candidates who reflect our values through a variety of activities aimed at influencing the outcome of the next election.

]]>amiller6210@gmail.com (Andrea Miller)ROOTWed, 22 Oct 2014 04:21:49 -0400What People Say About PDAhttp://www.pdamerica.org/2-uncategorised/107-what-people-say-about-pda
http://www.pdamerica.org/2-uncategorised/107-what-people-say-about-pdaAs the second-longest-serving Democrat in the House of Representatives, I know what I am talking about when I say that no one has worked harder on the issues protecting Social Security, fighting for a full employment economy and national health care both inside and outside the Democratic Party, than PDA.

—Rep. John Conyers, PDA Advisory Board Member

“PDA is attempting to represent the new generation of reformers. The Democratic Party will only ‘listen’ when the challenge of PDA and progressive reformers is powerful enough.”

—Tom Hayden, anti-war leader, former California State Senator

In just a few years, PDA and its allies have shaken up the political status quo on issues that range from ending the war in Iraq, protecting Social Security and fighting for a full employment economy, national health care and economic justice. I commend PDA for its bold agenda and actions, and I stand with PDA and its membership in the fight for the rights of the 99%.

“While the Hip Hop community is skeptical of the left movement because of its lack of base in communities of color, the Progressive Democrats of America’s current outreach and willingness to have people of color in its core leadership have shown everyone what it means to have a united front encompassing diverse constituencies.”

—Rev. Lennox Yearwood Jr., Hip Hop Caucus

“A new group called Progressive Democrats of America is organizing at the grassroots to put the kick back in the Democratic donkey. About time.”

—Jim Hightower, author and commentator

“Devastated by the results of the 2004 election, I was looking for a group that would help unite progressive Democrats with others, like the Greens, to form a ‘big tent’ for those who believe in social justice and peace. . .PDA has proven to be a creative, dynamic force for everything from electoral reform to ending the war in Iraq. I’m honored to be on the PDA board.”

—Medea Benjamin, CODEPINK, Global Exchange

“PDA is making politics more user-friendly for progressive peace and justice activists. Organized people power can still overturn the minority dominion of money, violence and lies in American politics.”

—Mimi Kennedy, actor

“The strategic activism of Progressive Democrats of America gives me new hope that the Democratic Party and our country can be turned around. Out of the ashes and despair of the 2004 election, PDA has been carrying the torch for progressive activism—PDA is working hard to establish chapters in every congressional district. I was there when PDA launched in Roxbury, Mass., and I’m spreading the word about PDA everywhere I go.”

—Rep. Barbara Lee

“PDA is the most dynamic progressive organization in the U.S. They are principled, fearless, and proud.”

—Bob Fertik, President, Democrats.com

“PDA is one of the most generous and energetic groups I have ever met. PDA truly understands what it takes to build a community of communities, a movement of movements.”

—Bill Scheurer, PeaceMajority.org

John Nichols, writer for the Nation Magazine, discussed Progressive Democrats of America's efforts to end the wars, healthcare not warfare, accountability, wall street, reform, taxing the wealthy and corporations, and more on the eve of the Iowa Caucus.

]]>amiller6210@gmail.com (Andrea Miller)ROOTTue, 28 Oct 2014 16:02:53 -0400Advisory Boardhttp://www.pdamerica.org/2-uncategorised/2-advisory-board
http://www.pdamerica.org/2-uncategorised/2-advisory-boardMimi Kennedy has been PDA's Advisory Board Chair since our founding in 2004, and hosted countless PDA events, actions, and receptions. An expert on election integrity and other issues, she is a co-coordinator of PDA's Election Issues Team. Born in Rochester, NY, Mimi has spent her life performing, writing, and working to promote peace and progress. Mimi was a key supporter of Dennis Kucinich’s campaigns. and has traveled from coast to coast, organizing street heat and meeting elected officials with PDA. She studied Nonviolent Theory and Strategy with 60's civil rights leader Rev. James Lawson. A founding member of Artists United to Win Without War, Mimi is a leading voice for peace and progress.

A uniquely talented and versatile actress, Mimi has appeared on stage, on television, and in feature films. Highlights include her roles as Dharma's hippie mother on the sitcom "Dharma&Greg," and as Ruth Sloan on "Homefront." Her TV credits range from Night Court and Drop Dead Diva to St. Elsewhere, ER, House and Grey's Anatomy. She appeared on stage in the Broadway and road companies of "Grease," and in the acclaimed one-woman show "The Lady with All the Answers" as Ann Landers. Recent projects include HBO’s political comedy VEEP, Woody Allen's romcom "Midnight In Paris," and BBC Film's anti-war satire "In The Loop" with the late, great James Gandolfini. Mimi is also a talented writer. She was a story editor for the Knots Landing TV Series, and her book, "Taken To The Stage: The Education of an Actress," was praised as "one of the great theatrical memoirs."

Rev. Dr. Rodney Sadler joined PDA's National Board in 2014. Dr. Sadler's work in the community includes terms as a board member of the N.C. Council of Churches, Siegel Avenue Partners, and Mecklenburg Ministries, and currently he serves on the boards of Union Presbyterian Seminary, Loaves and Fishes, the Hispanic Summer Program, and the Charlotte Chapter of the NAACP. His activism includes work with the Community for Creative Non-Violence in D.C., Durham C.A.N., H.E.L.P. Charlotte, and he has worked organizing clergy with and developing theological resources for the Forward Together/Moral Monday Movement in North Carolina.

Rev. Sadler is the managing editor of the African American Devotional Bible, associate editor of the Africana Bible, and the author of Can a Cushite Change His Skin? An Examination of Race, Ethnicity, and Othering in the Hebrew Bible. He has published articles in Interpretation, Ex Audito, Christian Century, the Criswell Theological Review, and the Journal of the Society of Biblical Literature and has essays and entries in True to Our Native Land, the New Interpreter's Dictionary of the Bible, the Westminster Dictionary of Church History, Light against Darkness, and several other publications. Among his research interests are the intersection of race and Scripture, the impact of our images of Jesus for the perpetuation of racial thought in America, the development of African American biblical interpretation in slave narratives, the enactment of justice in society based on biblical imperatives, and the intersection of religion and politics.

Medea Benjamin joined PDA’s National Board in 2004, and been a key leader for PDA’s “outside” strategy since our founding. A clear and effective voice for peace, she has appeared at numerous PDA events and actions. Medea is a cofounder of the peace group CODEPINK, and the international human rights organization Global Exchange. She is the author of eight books. Her latest is Drone Warfare: Killing by Remote Control. Since the September 11, 2001 tragedy, her work to promote a U.S. foreign policy that would respect human rights and gain us allies has taken her to Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan and Yemen.

Medea is currently campaigning to stop the use of killer drones. She has been an ally to democracy movements in the Arab Spring, including Egypt, Tunisia and Bahrain, and she has taken several delegations to Israel/Palestine--including Gaza. Medea was honored as one of 1,000 exemplary women from 140 countries nominated to receive the Nobel Peace Prize in 2005 on behalf of the millions of women who do the essential work of peace worldwide. In 2010 she received the Martin Luther King, Jr. Peace Prize from the Fellowship of Reconciliation and the 2012 Peace Prize by the US Peace Memorial.

Kristin Cabral joins the PDA national board this year, and she is an activist and attorney in Virginia. She has fought for voting rights and fair elections, including seeking to enfranchise people with past felony convictions and helping the Democratic Party with its election protection program in a state of often close elections. She was the Democrat for the U.S. House in 2012 in the swing DC suburbs of Virginia, doing unexpectedly well against an entrenched Republican incumbent on barely any time or money but with an intense field campaign that engaged the grassroots. Kristin, one of the first girls to desegregate Little League in 1974, is a lifetime advocate for women's equality, working with a number of organizations like NOW -VA, and she is from a union family and a supporter of workers. She is one of the first graduates of Head Start and put herself through college (Michigan) and law school (Harvard). Her concerns include the need for a working families agenda which pays heed to childcare issues and student loan debt -- both of which she herself has experienced.

Steve Cobble, helped co-found PDA at Roxbury in 2004, joined the National Board that year, and has served as PDA’s Political Director ever since. He’s spoken at and moderated discussions at PDA’s Leadership events in D.C. and Winslow, and at Progress Central conferences in Denver, Charlotte, and D.C. He is an Associate Fellow at the Institute for Policy Studies and works with Free Speech For People in the growing movement to roll back the Citizens United Supreme Court decision.

Steve helped co-found After Downing Street, and is a former political director and speechwriter for the National Rainbow Coalition. Steve was the National Delegate Coordinator for Jesse Jackson for President ‘88, and directed the Keep Hope Alive PAC. He has worked on many campaigns, including the winning efforts of Toney Anaya for New Mexico Governor, and Carol Moseley Braun for U.S. Senator. In 1991, he conducted election training workshops for the African National Congress in South Africa. He’s worked with Ralph Nader, and served as a strategy adviser to Dennis Kucinich in both of his Presidential campaigns. Steve was closely involved in the post-election battle over the suppression of African-American votes in Ohio 2004.

Rep. John Conyers, Jr., was with PDA for our launch in 2004, joined the PDA National Board in 2006, and has spoken at countless PDA conferences and events. A legendary force for peace, civil rights, and social justice, he worked closely with PDA exposing voting irregularities in Ohio in 2004. He served as a co-chair of PDA’s Healthcare not Warfare campaign.

Rep. Conyers is the Ranking Member of the House Judiciary Committee. Serving his 22nd term in Congress, he is the second-most-senior member of the House and dean of the Congressional Black Caucus. He was also a founding member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus. Among his many accomplishments in Congress: sponsorship of the Expanded and Improved Medicare Act, the Full Employment and Training Act, the Violence Against Women Act of 1994, the Motor Voter Bill of 1993, the Martin Luther King Holiday Act of 1983, the Alcohol Warning Label Act of 1988, and the Jazz Preservation Act of 1987. He is a Korean War veteran.

Rep. Keith Ellison joined the PDA national board in 2013, and has appeared at several PDA events including Progressive Central conferences and Progressive Round Tables. He serves as a Co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and represents Minnesota’s 5th District that includes the City of Minneapolis and surrounding suburbs. Rep. Ellison’s guiding philosophy is based on “generosity and inclusion” and his priorities include building prosperity for working families, promoting peace, pursuing environmental sustainability, and advancing civil and human rights.

Before his election to Congress Rep. Ellison was a noted community activist and ran a civil rights, employment, and criminal defense law practice in Minneapolis, and served two terms in the Minnesota State House of Representatives. He was born and raised in Detroit, Michigan, and has lived in Minnesota since earning his law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1990. He is the proud father of four children.

Bill Fletcher joined the PDA national board in 2009. has spoken at several PDA events, provided valuable advice and insights, and helped PDA forge closer relations with organized Labor. He serves as the Chairman of the Board of Directors for the International Labor Rights Forum, Executive Editor of The Black Commentator, and founded the Center for Labor Renewal. A longtime labor, racial justice and international activist, he is a former president of the TransAfrica Forum, a national non-profit organization organizing, educating and advocating for policies in favor of the peoples of Africa, the Caribbean and Latin America.

Bill is a founder of the Black Radical Congress and is a Senior Scholar for the Institute for Policy Studies. Bill co-authored (with Fernando Gapasin) Solidarity Divided, The Crisis in Organized Labor and A New Path Toward Social Justice. He served as the Vice President for International Trade Union Development Programs for the George Meany Center of the AFL-CIO, as Education Director and as Assistant to the President of the AFL-CIO.

Lila Garrett is a founding PDA Board Member. She’s hosted PDA on her Pacifica radio show Connect The Dots on KPFK in Los Angeles, and headlined several PDA events. A longtime activist and award-winning screenwriter, Lila was the Southern California Chair of the 2004 Kucinich campaign and is a past president of Southern California Americans for Democratic Action.

Lila has served on the boards of the ACLU, the Venice Family Clinic, and the Writers Guild of America. She founded Americans against War in Iraq (AAWWI), and is a founding board member of the California Clean Money Campaign. A television screenwriter, producer, and director, she won two Emmys and the Writers Guild Award.

Rep. Raul Grijalva joined the PDA National Board in 2008, and he has spoken at several PDA events. He has championed PDA priorities including economic justice, protecting the environment, defending civil liberties, and promoting universal healthcare. His district in Arizona includes seven separate Native American Tribes, and he is a strong advocate of Native American sovereignty.

Rep. Grijalva’s father was a migrant worker from Mexico who entered the U.S. through the Bracero Program. He is a leading voice for humane, comprehensive immigration reform. Before his election to Congress, he served in public office for decades—on the Tucson school board, and as a member and chairman of the Pima County Board of Supervisors.

Thom Hartmann joined the PDA National Board in 2009. He’s hosted and promoted PDA on his progressive national and internationally syndicated talk show--available in over a half-billion homes worldwide. He's a New York Times bestselling, 4-times Project Censored Award winning author of 24 books in print in 17 languages on five continents.

Talkers Magazine named Thom as the 8th most important talk show host in America in 2011, 2012, and 2013 (10th the two previous years), and for three of the past five years the #1 most important progressive host, in their “Heavy Hundred” ranking. An entrepreneur, he's founded several successful ongoing businesses. He’s lived and worked with his wife, Louise, and their three children on several continents.

Tom Hayden helped launch PDA at Roxbury in 2004, and is a founding member of the PDA National Board. He has participated at several PDA events including Progressive Central in Denver (2008). He writes for The Nation magazine, and is the author of 18 books and hundreds of articles at TomHayden.com. He teaches and leads workshops frequently on the history and nature of social movements.

Tom was a founding member of the Students for a Democratic Society (SDS) in 1961 and the author of its visionary call, the Port Huron Statement. He was elected to the California State Assembly in 1982 and the State Senate ten years later, serving eighteen years in all. Today, he is a leading voice for ending wars, combating sweatshops, and reforming politics through greater citizen participation.

Jim Hightower joined the PDA national board in 2007, and has served as the featured speaker at several PDA events--including the launch of our Healthcare Not Warfare Campaign in Washington, D.C. He’s traveled to California, Wisconsin, North Carolina and Florida in support of PDA and our endorsed candidates. Jim is a national radio commentator, writer, public speaker, and author of Swim Against The Current: Even A Dead Fish Can Go With The Flow.

Jim has spent three decades battling the Powers That Be on behalf of the Powers That Ought to Be—consumers, working families, environmentalists, small businesses, and just-plain folks. Twice elected Texas Agriculture Commissioner, Jim believes that the true political spectrum is not right to left but top to bottom, and he has become a leading national voice for the 80 percent of the public who no longer find themselves within shouting distance of the Washington and Wall Street powers at the top.

Rep. Barbara Lee was with PDA for our launch in 2004, and joined the PDA national board in 2006. She has appeared at several PDA events including Progressive Central in Denver, and PDA National Conferences in D.C. She is a former co-chair of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and has been a leader for progress in the Congress since succeeding the legendary Ron Dellums representing her Oakland/Berkeley-area district.

Rep. Lee sponsored legislation disavowing the preemptive war doctrine, and led bipartisan efforts to end the genocide in Darfur. Standing on principle amid post-9/11 hysteria, she was the lone member of Congress to vote against the resolution broadly authorizing President Bush’s use of force. She has been a leader in the global battle against HIV/AIDS and for civil rights and civil liberties. She formally objected in Congress to certifying Ohio’s electoral votes after the 2004 election.

Michael Lighty joined the PDA national board in 2010. He’s been a pillar of PDA’s organizing, speaking at Progressive Central events, attending Progressive round table meetings on the Hill, and joining us for two PDA leadership retreats at Winslow. Michael brought PDA into coalitions with labor and other organizations—most recently the Robin Hood Tax Campaign. He is currently the Director of Administration and Public Policy for the California Nurses Association (CNA).

Michael manages CNA’s national effort for healthcare reform on the single-payer model, an issue he has worked on since 1991. He coordinated CNA’s successful effort to reverse California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s rollback of CNA’s landmark hospital nurse-to-patient staffing law. He was campaign manager for the Prop 89 clean money initiative that won a prestigious Pollie award, and helped CNA lead the effort rejecting Gov. Schwarzenegger’s 2005 ballot measures, and CAN’s statewide ballot initiative campaign for HMO reform. Lighty joined CNA in 1994 and has served as Political Director. He was then-Mayor Jerry Brown’s first appointee to the Oakland Planning Commission, and served for more than seven years. He has been active with nonprofit organizations devoted to healthcare reform, voter registration, urban planning, and lesbian and gay equality.

Rep. Jim McGovernjoined the PDA national board in 2007, and has spoken at several PDA events including Progressive Central conferences and Progressive Round Tables. He currently serves as a ranking member of the House Rules Committee, and the House Budget Committee. A Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1997, he’s a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus and a leader on human rights, ending hunger, and other PDA priority issues.

Rep. McGovern was born in Worcester, Massachusetts, and earned a Masters of Public Administration at American University in Washington, D.C. He was a staff member for Sen. George McGovern of South Dakota (to whom he is not related) and for Rep. Joe Moakley before entering the House.

Robert Score joined the PDA Board August 2012, spoke at PDA’s Progressive Central III in Washington, D.C., and has help lead efforts to unite PDA with the House of Labor. Robert was appointed to the Labor Campaign For Single Payer Healthcare which led to his affiliation with the progressive Democrats of America. He was awarded an IATSE International Presidents Award at the 67th IATSE Quadrennial Convention on July 26, 2013 in Boston for advocacy work in regard to adequate healthcare for all in the United States. He currently serves as Recording-Corresponding Secretary for Local One, I.A.T.S.E.

Anas “Andy” Shallal joined the PDA National Board in 2009, and has hosted several events at Busboys and Poets, generously supporting PDA with his time, support, and delicious food. He is an artist and social entrepreneur. His restaurants Busboys and Poets and Eatonville create an environment where racial and cultural connections are consciously uplifted. Spaces to feed the mind, body and soul and where art, culture and politics take center stage and collide. With 4 locations in the Washington Metropolitan Area, Busboys and Poets has become home for progressives, artists and intellectuals including such notables as Howard Zinn, Cornel West, Alice Walker and Nikki Giovanni to name a few.

Andy’s businesses are members of the Restaurant Opportunities Center (ROC), a national restaurant worker and owner association that focuses on sustainable business and employment practices. Busboys and Poets and Eatonville Restaurant have been at the forefront of environmental stewardship. Andy received numerous awards including the Mayor’s Arts Award, Employer of the Year from the Employment Justice Center and the Mayor’s Environmental Award. He’s founded or co-founded several peace and justice organizations and serves on the board of the Institute for Policy Studies and the Washington Peace Center.

Donna Smith joined the PDA National Board in 2013 and has served as a National Chair of PDA's Healthcare Not Warfare campaign since its founding in 2007. Donna has spoken at several PDA events and conferences including Progressive Central Conferences and at Winslow Leadership events. She has helped lead PDA’s efforts to advance healthcare as a human right under an Expanded, Improved Medicare for All / single-payer model.

Donna is an exceptional journalist, writer, and public speaker. Michael Moore featured her in his 2007 documentary, SiCKO, about the dysfunctional U.S. healthcare system. She worked for National Nurses United/California Nurses Association as a political organizer before moving to Colorado in early 2013 to head up the Health Care for All Colorado Foundation.

Quentin Young, M.D., joined the PDA National Advisory Board during the summer of 2012. He is a leader on public health policy and medical and social justice issues, and one of the nation’s leading advocates for single-payer national health insurance, an improved Medicare for all. He currently serves as National Coordinator for Physicians for a National Health Program. Dr. Young has served as chairman of the American College of Physicians' Subcommittee on Human Rights and Medical Practice and has been a member of both the Humana-Michael Reese Medical Board and the American College of Physicians Health and Public Policy Committee.

For a decade Dr. Young served as chairman of the Department of Medicine at Cook County Hospital, where he established the Department of Occupational Medicine. He has been an American Medical Association member since 1952. In 1997 he was inducted as a master of the American College of Physicians, and he served as National President of the American Public Health Association in 1998. For many years Dr. Young had a private practice in Chicago, Ill., having previously served as a senior attending physician at Michael Reese Hospital. He is a clinical professor of Preventive Medicine and Community Health at the University of Illinois at Chicago. Dr. Young graduated from Northwestern Medical School, and did his residency at Cook County Hospital in Chicago. He retired from medical practice in 2008 in order to focus full-time on fighting the corporate takeover of medicine in America.